We’re now in Charleston, after having spent 2 nights in Georgetown, SC and one in Isle of Palms on the way. We’ve had some weather extremes this past week with high’s in the 70’s and lows in the 30’s, winds up to 49 knots. And then there was “thundersnow” (?!) in Charleston. (A little different from “lake effect” from our Rochester days.) Apparently, this was a first. Charleston’s never had snow this early. Lucky us. We’ve been able to spend some time with family and have started up new friendships as we blend in with another wave of southbound cruisers.

Entering Charleston with the NCL Cruise ship at dock

Harborwalk at Georgetown

GeorgetownWe had one nice warm day to tour in Georgetown before the winds blew. We had heard good things about this small town and were not disappointed. After an easy docking at Hazzard Marine, a few blocks from downtown Georgetown, we took a walk and explored the town. So many of the town’s historic houses have been preserved, that almost every house has a historic marker. Along Front Street, the main street along the harbor, are shops, restaurants and marinas, many of which are directly off the Harborwalk, a boardwalk along the river.

Fish being packed for market

Georgetown is also a working port, with fisherman coming and going from the town’s harbor, as well as large ships and barges serving the 2 main industrial plants – a steel mill and a paper plant. (One of the barges we passed on our first day on the waterway was on its way here with scrap metal.) The fishing boats mean fresh seafood. We purchased some wonderful local shrimp from a store right next to our marina. It was delicious!

Our second day at Georgetown, the wind blew the balmy temperatures away and churned up the harbor, causing some problems for a few of the many boats anchored in the harbor. We just had to deal with the waves churned up in the harbor by the 45+ knot winds. We decided to use the time to get some chores done. We changed the oil, since we had motored almost 100 hours (!) since we last changed it in Solomons. We had also started having problems with the oven, which would no longer come up to temperature. David spent time adjusting the air flow on the oven, which improved its performance, but hasn’t fixed the problem.

Sunrise from our slip on the ICW

Isle of PalmsWe decided to stop just short of Charleston on our trip south after leaving Georgetown. It’s a 60 mile trip, which ends in the busy Charleston harbor. We weren’t interested in doing that at night. The trip along the Winyah Bay and along the marshes of the Frances Marion National Park was a beautiful one, albeit a little chilly. We were glad that we decided to leave Georgetown on a rising tide, since the water along this stretch would have been very shallow at low tide.

We arrived in Isle of Palms by mid-afternoon, in time to take a walk on the beach and enjoy some good food at Morgan Creek Grill, next to our marina.

NCL Majesty at the dock in Charleston

CharlestonWe left early Saturday morning from Isle of Palms for the short (2 hour) trip to Charleston, since the opening Ben Sawyer Swing Bridge was on request if we made it before 9am. We were in good company as we entered the Charleston harbor, following a cruise ship which docked just south of our marina.

When we turned from the ICW north up the Cooper River, we faced the impressive 3+ knots of current of the ebb tide. We chugged up the river, closing in on the marina and facing some impressively large container ships headed out to sea (luckily in the other channel). As Cathy turned into the marina, she quickly realized the current was overpowering her steering and forcing the boat too close to the south side of the opening. She gunned it (as much as you can do that in a sailboat) and went into the marina at near full speed, only to have to turn into the slip shortly after entering. We did it, but it’s always good to have help on the dock, which came in the form of Grant, the dockmaster, a gracious host with a dry humor.

New Ravenel Bridge over the Cooper River

The Charleston Maritime Center is just south of the new Ravenel suspension bridge and close to much of the Charleston downtown as well as right beside the Fort Sumter terminal and the SC Aquarium. It is also wedged between 2 commercial docks where large container ships load and unload their cargo. It was an amazing sight to see them pull in and out so close to the end of our pier.

Cargo ship makes its way down the Cooper River

As we headed out to explore the first day, we were delighted to discover a ship-building project of the SC Maritime Museum, the schooner Spirit of South Carolina, right across the street. We were encouraged to explore the project by climbing aboard and below the boat under construction. It is scheduled to be launched in February and (hopefully) rigged and ready for sail when the tall ships arrive in May.

We spent one afternoon touring Fort Sumter, which was an interesting tour. Both the ranger talks and the museum exhibits were fascinating descriptions of the events leading up to the firing upon Fort Sumter and the thinking of both sides as they made the final moves that embroiled the nation in a Civil War.

Family and FriendsCathy has 2 cousins living in Charleston and it was a joy to be able to spend time with them and their families. (Their arrival at the Maritime Center was made all the more exciting by a large 150foot fishing boat crashing into the marina’s fuel dock in a fumbled attempt to dock. It ended up splitting a giant piling in 2.) One of her second cousins sings in the choir at St. Phillips Episcopal in downtown Charleston. We decided to join him for the services on Sunday morning.

St. Phillips Cemetery sign has an amusing reference to the many ghost tours in the city.

Bum's Rest passing us on the ICW

We were pleased to find that our Charleston neighbors would be the sailboat Whim, a couple cruising from Camden, Maine. We had originally met them in Myrtle Beach and then kept running into them along the way -- at Wacca Wache, Georgetown and, now, Charleston. They had to head north to attend to some business at home, so while the winds blew in the cold front for several days, we watched over their boat. It was also a surprise to hear from Lunasea (aka Chris and Margaret from Solomons Island) on the radio as we entered Charleston harbor. They were headed out from Charleston to the ocean as we headed into the harbor. When they heard us hailing the marina on the radio, they hailed us and we caught up with their plans. They headed south to St. Mary’s. In Georgetown, we met a couple from New Jersey on another Beneteau, Bum's Rest. Their boat had been fitted with a swing keel which allowed them to reduce their draft to just under 3 feet, a big plus on the waterway.

So, we are weathering yet another storm, but are once again tied up safely in a slip as we wait for the weather to clear for our further journey south.